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"The Motorola Solutions 2011 Hospitality Market Barometer reveals that 91 percent of hospitality decision makers realize the increasing importance of mobile and wireless technology, while 78 percent recognize the role mobility plays in ensuring a competitive advantage for their business. As a result, hospitality venues are investing in new technology, as well as powerful wireless networks to handle greater data volumes and increasing demands for high-speed access from the customer and mobile workforce. "

The article analyzed why hotels do investment to It in 2011. It concluded three main reasons, which are elevating the guest experience, empowering the mobile worker, and enabling operational efficiency. It's already 2013 now and things can become different. Hotels should invent carefully according to its specific necessary and customers' necessary.

Dear team! I found an article, very old but to me, very actual and interesting about how the Internet Technology is improving and progressing, and the investment bring benefits only. In 2011 , only 4 years ago, we can see that the companies were having a clear plan to improve the communication system. By introducing wireless, tablets, WLANs , to improve network reliability... Today we have it all on hands. We are using all the devices online , wireless and with no problem to access. No cords on the floor, no telegrams ... Internet technologies is a big progress in our century and is developing and growing, by leaving some of us behind. :)

In the article, "Travel Agents Increase Use of GDS to Book Hotel Rooms," it talked about how the leading global provider of revenue is generating solutions for hotels, it shows how important GDS platforms are to travel agents. "84 percent of respondents indicated that they were using their GDS platform the same amount or more often than in the past, with 35 percent stating that they are using GDS more." Back in 2009, when the last study was conducted, about 26 percents of travel agents said that they used their GDS platform more often than in the past. This study also states that the annual GDS shopping displays will be over $50 million in 2011, which will increase more than a million bookings compared to 2010. There was another survey that was done and they surveyed different travel agents from across the world that were subscribed to a major GDS system. In the survey the travel agents indicated that promotional messages are effective and often prompt bookings. Out of the travel agents they surveyed, 66% said that they were aware of the "promotional messages requested addition information by looking at the screen attached to he promotional message." From this survey it showed that promotional messages are an excellent way to reach travel agents and from reaching the agent, they also reaching the customer, it's a win-win reaction.

I enjoyed the part about brand and promotional messaging, that is always a lure for me. When I see an attractive offer, evern If I'm not interested in booking or going to the destination, I often click on it anyway just to see the offer. It is a very effective marketing tool.

According to the article, a survey sponsored by SAP suggests that businesses are looking to make investments in IT and effective use of technology is seen as a key priority in achieving growth. When it comes to technology, becoming more efficient and using IT more effectively over the next year is among the top three priorities of those surveyed, with 46 percent saying using technology more effectively was a top business priority. The survey indicated this was especially important in emerging countries, including India (72 percent), Brazil (75 percent), Russia (33 percent), China (44 percent) and Mexico (33 percent). In addition, 60 percent of respondents said they are automating more tasks and functions now than three years ago.

According to an Economist Intelligence Unit survey, the survey of more than 1,000 SMEs included businesses from the developed economies of France, Germany, Japan, the UK, and the United States. 53 percent of those in developed markets said growth were a top business priority. Effective use of technology was seen as a key priority in achieving growth, and according to respondents, the three main internal obstacles to growth were finding and keeping new customers, hiring and retaining people with the right skills and operating the business efficiently. When it comes to technology, becoming more efficient and using IT more effectively over the next year is among the top three priorities of those surveyed, with 46 percent saying using technology more effectively was a top business priority. The hotel industry usually does not invest enough to grow compared to other industries. I believe it is because they consider being a technological leader in this industry does not bring more profit than they invest. Investing on technology might not bring instant profits but it can be one of ways to become a top business priority.

Another interesting article that we all can relate to. A study recently had results disclosed where 500 people were surveyed into how they decide on where to eat out and how internet sites are influencing decisions. To start off, about 50% of people who go out to eat refer to a friend before making a decision on where to eat. As it relates to our class, before choosing a place to eat, 27.7% of consumers use a user generated review site and 27% use the actual restaurant's website. Consumers preferred to use user friendly websites the most and sometimes even referred to blogs for opinions. Google was actually cited as the third most utilized website for those seeking a second opinion with 16.5%. I thought the most interesting fact was that Food Network actually ranked on the list to getting some more insight on where to eat, with 1.7% of consumers using that website. Next time you are going out to eat somewhere, think about if you use websites or apps to assist you in making the decision. I guess you can make a review site about anything.

There is a lot of talk within the travel industry about the future of travel distribution. Some argue that direct bookings from airlines are the new future, while others are arguing that the continued use of GDSs still remain essential to travel distribution. ASTA and Travel Weekly conducted a survey of travel agencies to get their take on GDSs. Although the use of GDSs continues to shrink, the declining rate of use has been slowing down. In 2010, the rate was 76% and in 2011 the rate was 75%. In 2012, surveys found that 72% of agencies surveyed were still using a GDS. ASTA predicts that the rate of decline will eventually stop because no other method of booking flights beats the GDS System. Agencies surveyed said that they continue to use GDSs because of the speed, and the ability to easily compare airlines and hotels. Airline bookings continue to be the main reason for the success of GDSs, with 90% of air bookings made through the GDS. 95% of car rentals are made through a GDS, and 50% of hotel bookings are done through GDS. GDS systems continue to drive competition, and make it easier for agencies to negotiate with suppliers. Agencies also continue to receive incentives from GDSs as long as they use a GDS. I believe that as long as travel agencies stay in business and are continuing to turn a profit then the GDSs are safe. Travel agencies are not likely to switch to a new system if the easily accessible, and easily manageable system is still GDS. If travel agencies begin to become less popular, then GDSs may see a rapid decline in the use of the system.

The author introduced a recent study, which uncovered that information technology (IT) spending in the hospitality industry was expected to increase in 2011. Even though the article and survey were conducted in 2011, we can tell that the hospitality industry paid attention to the importance of IT investment and made good use of IT to improve customer service. In the article, the survey revealed that 56 percent of hospitality organizations planned to raise new technology investments to better equip their workforces, improve operational efficiencies and enhance the customer experience.

This article shares results from an environmental sustainability study of 100 US resorts and a separate survey of 120,000 hotel guests. It discusses a variety of sustainability initiatives such as water and energy conservation, recycling and waste reduction, LEED construction, and guest engagement. While guest engagement was significant, indicating 75% of guests surveyed actually participated in sustainability initiatives during their stay, the effect on guest satisfaction is modest at best. At best, only 0.6% of guests selected specific properties based on environmental sustainability. Guest participation in sustainability efforts were highest at extended stay locations, followed by luxury and upscale properties, with economy properties placing last. The most effective and commonly used aspect of sustainability efforts was towel and linen reuse, showing up in 91% of the survey responses. Overall, while the traditional drivers of guest satisfaction remain consistent across brands and property types (room, facilities, food and beverage quality), sustainability programs do not lower guest satisfaction, but are increasingly becoming a standard expectation of both guests and employees, and have significant cost-savings potential when implemented and managed effectively.

The company Experian Marketing Services recently performed a survey asking marketers their approach to holiday plans this season. Ninety-six percent of the marketers surveyed planned to invest this year in e-marketing services. Another survey showed that the amount of money President Obama spent on online marketing could have helped him in his re-election. E-marketing is in my opinion one of if not the most effective way to market products and services.

This article speaks on how GDS are doing in the age of 2020. Not only does it talk about how its doing over all but it also goes over how they remain successful with the new times. Keeping up with changing demands and trends.

This article talks about how GDS system usage has been and continues to increase over the years. While many owners prefer direct bookings on their site. GDS has been increasing at a faster rate than other channels which are used by travel agents. Hotels need to e using the GDS platforms in 2020 and beyond to maximise the benefits that it brings.

Scott Falconer's article, "Is 2020 the year of the GDS," entails discussion of the survey results of the DGS site as the most sued and rapidly growing site for booking by travel agents. Falconer also advises hotels and other travel agents to optimize the use of the GDS site to increase bookings and therefore profitability. In discussing the survey results, Falconers also suggests the GDS increase its potential by maintaining parity, observing prices, and promotions are critical in its continued growth. Falconer's finding first indicates that GDS usage has significantly grown in the past ten years. The author notes that by 2019, the number of travel agents using the site of GDS to make bookings had increased from 42 million to 79 million between 2009 and 2019 (Falconer). In the recent past, Falconer argues that the ratings and growth in usage of the site provide hotels with opportunities to grow revenue as the site makes 22 times more bookings than consumers. Through surveying with 900 travel agents, Falconer concluded that GDS is a prime channel for bookings because of its recent fast growth compared to other alternative booking sites. Secondly, Falconer notes that there is a need to stabilize the parity rates for the GDS channel to succeed. Based on the survey, most travel agents indicated that parity rates are influential to the decision to book a facility using the GDs site or others. Therefore, Falconer advises the GDS management to ensure the consistency of the price that properties offer to clients on other channels. The services listed in the sites are available as indicated at the property. In this case, the GDS can improve booking experience by clearly stating commissions, discounts, or cancellation policies at the site to increase the availability of information to the clients regarding the nature of commitment and expected services as the promised value. Falconer also highlights the importance of adver

It is no surprise that in a time of a pandemic like Covid-19 the hospitality industry and restaurants are having a difficult time due to social distancing and e-commerce would be doing great. Media and marketing service firm Engine did a survey of 1000 people online and 31% of the people indicated the they were going to increase shopping online then just 7 days later that number went to 42% which was a 35% increase. 80% of people indicated that they would be cutting back on going to restaurants and 62% would not travel for business.E commerce will definitely be here to stay.

The article highlights the benefits that companies around the world are deriving through the use of web 2.0. This was done through a survey from a range of industries that has used web2.0 and has seen tremendous value of the technology in dealing with both internal and external customers. According to the report 69 percent of respondents report that web 2.0 has impacted their businesses in a positive way. They are able to market products more effectively, reduce the cost of doing business and better able to communicate with customers, suppliers and of course the ability to collaborate with business partners and experts in a dynamic way; something that was not possible using the static web pages of web 1.0 The article was written four years ago and this goes to show that the technological capabilities of web 2.0, one that revolutionizes the way business has been conducted online, has been around for quite a long time and has been creating tremendous benefits for many businesses such as increase revenues. As the technology continues to increase and expand, and the public's acceptance continues to grow, going beyond web 2.0 is what we are presently experiencing using tools such as semantic web and augmented reality with the launch of web 3.0. The report uses exhibits to highlights areas that companies have gain measurable benefits using web 2.0, how companies have tie other technologies into web 2.0 and regions of the world such as North American and China that have experience tremendous benefits from web 2.0 interaction with both customers and business partners.

Based on a 2012 survey technology investment its anticipated to be essentially flat for 2012. Its expected to grow i Asia-Pacific region and Latin America, but to decline in Europe and North America.

More than 52,000 surveys were completed by the American Hotel & Lodging Association regarding various concepts of hotels. As for this weeks theme: Hotels report that ecofriendly practices are still a top priority. According to the website, water saving programs are in use at 75% of properties and about the same about have a linen and towel reuse program. Although a short article, the results from the survey were able to be found. The numbers prove that the hospitality field is clearly moving towards a greener foundation; whether that is because of political pressure of because they actually care about the environment is till up for grabs.

This article is a good one that demonstrates how GDS are now more often used than times before. The article states that the 2011 Global Travel Agent GDS study demonstrates how important GDS platform and shopping Displays are to the travel agents. They stated the 84 percent of those who took the survey stated that they are using the GDS just as much or even more than they did in the pass and 35 % of these stated that they were using it more than they did in the pass. The article explained how these numbers have greatly increased since 2009 where only 26% agents admitted that they used the GDS systems more than before. This study is 2011 reaffirmed Travel Click's projection, which was that GDS hotel bookings would surpass %50 million in the year 2011. This was far more than that of 2010. The article goes on to explain how the GDS will improve the booking and services of the industry all around. Furthermore, the article went on to explain a worldwide survey conducted for agents who were among the largest GDS in the world and some 495 responses were collected. The survey was conducted by Phoenix Marketing International, which is and independent marketing research firm Travel agents were indicated that promotional messages were effective and prompt during bookings and 66% of these agents request additional information about it. While, 68% of these agents looked into the GDS for more information. After this survey was complete the agents who were aware of promotional messages, 46% of them made North American bookings within 3 months as a result of the promotional messaging and 44% made non- North American bookings. The survey itself shows that promotional messages were and excellent way to get the agents interested. In the article it is quoted how the promotional messages acts in a chain reaction to reach the agent and then the customer, which allows sales all over the world.

GDS provides a perfect virtual marketplace for travel inventory sellers such as hotels, airlines, and car rental systems to showcase their wares to a global Internet travel audience. The GDS is a natural outlet for hotels, resorts, and even smaller inns that want to increase revenue and online marketing exposure. As the GDS channel produces one of the highest average daily rates of any booking channel, there is a huge opportunity for hoteliers to influence travel agents through the GDS at the point-of-sale.

Yes, GDS is of great importance for tourism development. It provides such a huge market of tourism information for customers, airlines, hotels, travel agents and any parts included in the tourism. Someone said that GDS will end travel agent, however, in my opinion; they have their own advantages and will supplement each other in the future.

This article surveys varies companies sacrificing mobile security for business reasons. A third (32 percent) of organizations surveyed admitted to sacrificing mobile security to improve business performance and 38 percent of those said that their organization is at significant risk from mobile threats. Unfortunately, many of these business owners are uneducated on mobile security and unaware of less expensive alternates that can keep their sensitive data safe.

This article highlights the importance of event registration stage. According to the survey, registration produces up to 48% of total event revenue. Thus, it is crucial for the event planners to make this stage easy and effective. As internet gives an opportunity to easily submit registration information online the event planners need to make sure that they make the whole process simple and convenient. First, mobile integration is very important. Since more and more people access internet from their smartphones and tablets rather than from their desktops, a great attention should be paid to the mobile compatibility of the service. The prefilled fields could be automatically offered to save registrants' time. Mobile integration could also imply automatic check-in with RFID badges at a conference or surveys that are pushed to the attendees' phones after they are checked in. To increase registration numbers some easy steps could be undertaken. The form could contain easy links to share the event on social media. The "no" registrants may be offered "regret surveys" and asked to reference those who might be interested to attend. Electronic event registration provides the event planners with plenty of structured personal information. It could be used for personalization and customization of services and further engagement of the attendees. So in my opinion, event registration software gives the event planners a powerful tool to engage the people coming to the event and make their experience unique by the means of customization and personalization. It also helps to keep the track of all registrants for further marketing.

For recent years, the operators in the hospitality industry are looking for the suitable solutions that allow them to break down the tableside ordering barriers, such as the mobile phone-based POS. In the annual report analysis for the POS Software Trends, the hospitality industry takes a look at industry-wide innovation priorities for this system. Among the talking with the developers for the enhancements for POS software in 2011, many developers focus on launching new options for mobilize operators.In this year, social media, cloud computing and mobile solutions are the three top and will continually growing in 2012. A trend for 2012 POS purchasing plan is, more investment in the year ahead. It is a full reversal of the results of this survey. Greatest number of operators plans to add new functionality and features to their current POS software in the year ahead. A third of operators plan to expand the installation base of the POS software they currently use. Researching and testing new POS solutions for possible future deployment will be the focus for 20.5% of hospitality industry.

This article introduces the trends of POS in hospitality industry. It lists some data to show the hospitality operators consider mobile phone-based POS instead of tableside ordering devices. It also list the information about the hospitality operators plans to add new functionality and features to their current POS software.

The points of sale have changed over the years. The hard wires, all in one unit are being replaced by mobile devices. As the article mentions, hospitality operators have been looking for solutions to break tableside ordering barriers. After motorola released a tablet, the software community has been working in developing applications for both consumers and employees. The POS software developers are been asked about the improvement happening in the technology. Social media, cloud computing and mobile solutions are growing trends. Hospitality operators were asked which POS platform innovation are they looking for. The POS features in demand are: Online POS Mobile phone based POS ordering Enterprise wide centralized POS Table side POS ordering Cloud computing Software as a service Open source There is an increase in investment for POS development. The POS features purchasing plans: Add new functionality features and modules to POS Test and research new POS solution for possible implementation after 2011 Install POS on a wireless network.

The article describes how hotels have been late in adopting the cross-selling and up-selling trip extras that airlines have been so successful with over the last decade or so. It also summarizes the results of research done by Phocuswright with iSeatz which found that the majority of business travelers surveyed are interested in purchasing additional on-site extras and off-site extras. The research also found that the hotels that were surveyed cite reasons such as a lack of technology and stretched resources at hotel level as barriers to implementation.

The author fails to recognize that the e-commerce platforms developed by the airlines over the past decade have been focused on selling unbundled extras, whereas until recently the hotel e-commerce platforms have been very focused on offering the customer bundled packages and only had limited capability for up-selling and cross-selling.

The article discusses how hotel lenders and investors have found success with the direction of the investment market. According to the 2012 edition of the Hospitality Investment Survey, lower interest rates along with revenues that are outpacing expense growth are combining to provide investors with a greater level of comfort in regards to the U.S. lodging investment market. According to Scott Smith, vice president of PKF Consulting USA, the double digit growth of profits along with low capital and limited supply growth has made hotel real estate much more attractive to commercial real estate investors. Smith notes that institutional investors as well as private equity funds are more inclined to invest in full service hotels existing in the major markets, which has shown the most profit growth.  According to the text, investments in the hospitality industry will continue to remain attractive to investors due to the expected continued improvement in industry performance along with the availability of cheap capital.